Tuesday,  Nov. 05, 2013 • Vol. 16--No. 112 • 9 of 28

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moisture from the Gulf of Mexico combined to form a storm that devastated the region. Rainfall amounts ranged from 12 to 20 inches. Flood peaks in the Cheat, Elk, Greenbrier, Tygart Valley, Little Kanawha, and South Branch Potomac River basins were the greatest ever recorded. The Little Kanawha River at Glenville crested 2 feet higher than any peak since 1915. The flood left about 9,000 homes either destroyed or severely damaged. More than 500 bridges were damaged or washed away. Forty-seven deaths were reported, and property damage was estimated at $500 million in the 29 counties that were declared disaster areas.
1987: Flash floods stranded 8,000 people in Death Valley National Park in south

ern California as more than an inch of rain fell, washing out many roads.
1991: Typhoon Thelma was one of the most devastating tropical systems to affect the Philippines in the 20th Century. Reports indicated that 6000 people died by catastrophic events including dam failure, landslides, and extensive flash flooding. The highest casualties occurred on Leyte Island where widespread logging in recent years had stripped the hills above the port city bare of vegetation.
2002: Alabama's perfect record for the year was spoiled when two fatalities occurred in Abbeville because of a tornado. Five days later, a larger tornado outbreak killed 12 people in the state.

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